ITV: problems with 10m calls

ITV’s long-awaited Deloitte report into premium rate phone-in scandals has uncovered problems with up to 10 million calls to the broadcaster’s major entertainment shows. These involved viewers still being encouraged to call after a winner had been picked or being told there was a randomly selected winner when in fact there was a pre-selected short list.

The broadcaster expects to take an £18 million exceptional charge as a result of the investigation, and has set aside £7.8 million to hand back to viewers who call in. If this amount is not used up in refunds, any balance will be donated to charity.